I don't think The Boyfriend likes me referring to him as TB in the manner of tuberculosis...or Taco Bell. Hrm. Maybe I will call him TBF. The. Boy. Friend.

Cherries. I'm in love with cherries right now. I gobble them up! On Sunday, TBF and I went to the Ballard Farmers Market, and the first thing I bought was cherries. Yum, yum, yum.

I'm gonna run with my food topic here. The other day I made these tasty butternut squash enchiladas, and I whipped up avocado hummus for the first time this weekend. "Whipped up" might be too strong of a term, because my blender is old and wimpy, so I spent some time hovered over the glass pitcher stirring and blending. For a first attempt at hummus, I think it turned out alright, but it could still use some work. The enchiladas will definitely show up again. If you try it, be careful with the chipotles if you're sensitive to spicy. I used two, and it turned out pretty hot (and I like spicy!). I think I may even cut back a bit next time. The leftovers are delicious, but they get more intense as time goes on. Also, to make the dinner quicker and simpler, I grabbed a bag of frozen squash.

It's avocado salsa time at the Santa Fe Cafe!

These days I'm motoring around listening to LCD Soundsystem's This is Happening. Quirky goodness. I think LCD Soundsystem decided that all songs must be a minimum of 8 minutes. Lengthy, quirky goodness. I'm not complaining. I'm charmed by the variety in the music and lyrics throughout the album. No predictable sounds from song to song. Plus, my favorite lyrics go "Pow! Pow-pow! Pow! Pow!" Who doesn't love that? It's like a little verbal punch in the air that I find satisfying. Pow!

(TBF may not find it all that satisfying when I'm running around the apartment repeatedly shout-singing the pows.)

Have I mentioned that I'm in the middle of reading The Food Revolution by John Robbins? I can't remember. It's an interesting, fast read for a book that's about the potentially dull subject of food production and sources, diet choices, and the potential effects of certain foods on our health (namely, animal products). I may be a little bit biased, because I'm already very focused on this topic and deeply disturbed by what's happening in the US. So, yeah, I'm painfully aware of the horrors of factory farming and the senseless cruelty toward the animals humans will ultimately eat for dinner. And, I choose to eat a primarily plant-based diet that's advocated for in the book. I'm far from perfect in my choices, of course, but I'm very clear on my moral and health reasons for being a vegetarian. At this point, I can't unknow what I know, and I'm committed to making conscious choices about the food I put into my body.

So, the book isn't teaching me a ton new about that, but I'm learning a lot of specifics about the links between food/diet and particular diseases (cancer, heart, diabetes, etc.). While I have a vague grasp on how these things are related, I had absolutely no idea about the statistical data. In some cases, the wide chasm in the rates of diseases between vegetarians and meat-eaters is truly astounding, from incredibly low to shockingly high. There is overwhelming evidence that patients with issues like heart disease experience vast improvements in health--complete turnarounds, in fact--with a shift to a plant-based diet. I guess I'm surprised this information isn't really out there and in our faces at this point. Isn't heart disease the #1 killer in America? While I believe it's ultimately an individual's responsibility to educate him/herself on self care, I feel like we are led to believe through advertising that certain foods aren't that bad, or are even healthy and desirable. I mean, this book came out 9 years ago, and John Robbins isn't the only one spreading the word about food, I'm sure. I know our awareness of nutrition is slowly changing, but now we're seeing commercials for cereals infused with whole grains and 32 grams of sugar, not for foods that will ultimately contribute to a healthier and greater quality of life overall. I guess this isn't that surprising when you follow the bucks to Got Milk? and It's What's for Dinner. But, seriously. With so many lives on the line, big change is needed, and it's like we're slogging through thick mud. It's frustrating.

Pow! Pow-pow! Pow! Pow!